Our Anxiety and Fear of the Dentist Chair

You have probably heard or said this phrase yourself; “I hate the dentist!” This is an often-used term about the fear of going to the Dental Office and not really about the dentist themselves. People get anxious about visiting the dentist for many reasons. Here are some of the most common:

Pain

Pain is usually the reason for patients to be anxious about a dental visit. The pain often is intense making the fear of going to the dentist worse.

Fear

This is a learned response probably going back to your first dentist visit. This was probably when you were very young – in some cases too young. And if there was any pain, it usually developed into memories that are not positive about the dental clinic.

Inconvenience

If you work, finding the time to go to the dentist is often hard to or provides a barrier to visiting the dentist. All of us have busy lives and struggle to find time for the dentist as well as the doctor. Often busy is really an excuse because there is an underlying anxiety or concern.

Embarrass

Often the fear of the dentist is so bad that people don’t go until they must. These usually lead to teeth being in a rather bad shape. So, you have another excuse to not go. There are patients that are very embarrassed about their smile but probably only go when a tooth needs to be pulled.

Financial problems

Almost everyone has health insurance but almost no one has dental insurance. So, every time you or a member of the family goes to the dentist –it can be very expensive.

Bad experience

A bad experience can really have a lasting effect and links that bad experience to your brain. This is when you need “laughing gas” to get into the car to go to the dentist.

So, always remember if you are anxious and scared of the dentist, most other people are that way also. And hardly anyone goes to the dentist every six months. Therefore, the newest thing in dentistry total implants in one day has become so popular.